Depending on stakeholder preferences, possible models for our proposed
Domiciliary Care venture include,
A Charitable Incorporated Organization and Community Interest Company (CIC) Limited by Guarantee [not profit distributing]
A Co-operative [not profit distributing] or
A Community Interest Company (CIC) Limited by Shares [profit distributing].
The choice of model depends on where and from whom we can raise the
seed capital.
We see a 2-year budget of about £46,000 to set it up and get going.
Vision and Purpose
To be called Malvern Co-owned Care, the Board will be made up of a group
of leaders whose approach will reflect the needs of those elderly and
differently abled people they seek to support.
The vision is to have significant democratic and corporate accountability. A
new bespoke organization structure and set of processes has been
designed to focus control and management responsibility upon the Service
Users who will form the bulk of the voting membership. Service Users will
be in a majority on The Board. Carers and relatives are also to be voting
members.
Co-owned organizations are relatively scarce in social care and yet are
growing in attractiveness as they:-
Are managed with input from all immediate stakeholders
Fit the latest emphasis on co-production
Operate alongside exiting models of social and personal care.
The venture capital sector currently dominates the market. Bound by law
to maximise income for the owners and shareholders, providers are not
primarily focused upon the interests of service users. This sector make-up
sustains the mixed and variable quality of provision.
It is anticipated that Malvern Co-owned Care will be a UK first, on any scale.
Once news of the success and attractiveness of this approach gets
broadcast, it is likely that the model will spread across the UK and help to
eradicate some of the existing frustrations and failures of existing models of
social and personal care.
Those with experience of the sector know what is wrong with the current
approach, where:
The quality and reliability of care is erratic
Employment contracts are often unbalanced in favour of the employer
These cause:
Carer attrition rates to be high
Operational volatility to be high and so wasteful of resources.
The priorities of the Malvern Co-owned Care will provide for more
sustainable services and a more equitable approach to the dissemination of
decision-making authority over the management of the services concerned.
In providing good governance, Malvern Co-owned Care leadership will
communicate using:-
Direct one-to-one contact
A variety formal meetings
Lunches together
all of which help to counter the major problem of isolation and loneliness -
most Service Users still have a ‘brain’ and a willingness to use it. For those
who are subject to a ‘power of attorney’, then their representative(s) are
legally authorised to act on their behalf.
Delivery area
The idea is to commence the project in Malvern, Worcestershire and then
spread the model to other areas of the UK and abroad. As news spreads, it
is anticipated that others will volunteer to open Agencies based on those
with Lived Experience controlling both the day-to-day operations and the
strategic approach of each Agency.
Some board facilitation will probably be required in early stages.
Budget
Item or Activity Cost
Office equipment £3,000
Office rent £15,000
Training £8,000
Utilities £4,000
Mileage £12,000
Inspectorate fees (CQC) £1,154.40 (Year 1) and £2,173.29
(Year 2)
Total £45,327.69
Project length (up to two years) 2 Years
Market - Who is to be served
This will initially be a Domiciliary Care Agency supporting Older People and
Adults with Disabilities. Those supported will be Service Users with an
existing history of care take-up, as well as those newly referred for
domiciliary care support.
There is a massive need for good quality approaches to the provision of
care. This would be different to what is currently available as Co-ownership will ensure a resistance to cutting corners, eg providing sufficient induction and regular training, paying for travel time between calls, and the provision of a pension scheme etc.
The funds from sought will assist the project viability in the first two years
and complement the fees received from private service users and those
funded by the Local Authorities.